How come?
by Maeusle
Summary: After the thing with Dean,the only boy Rory has something to do with is her best friend Jess.Well, that is until she goes to Yale, where a handsome blond messes around with her head. TRORY Chap 2 now up, R&R, please!
1. The reunion

**How come...?**

Disclaimer: I don't own Girlmore Girls

So, this is the first chapter of my new Trory. I guess it's going to be a long one, because I honestly don't know where it leads…  
Plus: I'll try to write longer chapters this time…It's just that I always have to look up so many words…**  
Anyway, this is what you need to know:**  
It's set in something like a different season 4 (what a description), some things and even parts of the text will be the same or similar, but most won't…  
Luke and Lorelai are already together ('cauz I love Java Junkies, too) and Jess and Rory are best friends.  
Dean is with Lindsay…

Tristin had moved away short after Rory went to Chilton, so they don't really know each other.  
Paris and Tristin were friends in earlier days, but when Tristin changed into the cocky player, their friendship broke apart ( as in the series)  
I think everything else will explain itself…

**Another note: Thanks to KeitaWolf, **my beta, who made this chapter at least 10 times better!

**  
Chapter 1- the reunion**

The day after his arrival, Tristin DuGrey walked through one of the dormitories of Yale.  
Of course he and his roommates had celebrated their first night as such, so he first thought his mind was playing a joke on him, when a familiar blonde passed him by and headed for one of the dorms.  
As he couldn't help but follow her aggressive run, he began blinking and rubbing his eyes in disbelieve.

The blonde's hand was about to reach the doorknob, when she heard someone calling her name.  
"Paris?"  
The girl stopped surprised. Didn't she know this voice? Paris turned to the side and her jaw dropped open.  
"Tristin? Tristin DuGrey?"  
The guy nodded amused.  
"The one and only." He said smirking as he approached  
"Wow…It's been a while, huh?" He said running a hand through his messy hair.   
"How are you?" Tristin pulled the blond into a short embrace as she hesitantly responded.  
"I'm fine." Paris answered smiling in confusion. Not that she didn't appreciate the comity of their reunion - it just wasn't exactly the way they had gone apart…  
"What about you?"  
Tristin gave out a bitter laugh. He thought back to last night's party and his aching head piped up again by knocking heavily. Too many drinks, too little sleep- he didn't really want to answer this question. So he just smirked running his hand through his hair once more.

"I'd never expected to meet you here, Gellar. What happened to Harvard?"  
He tried to change the topic, but noticed at once that he shouldn't have when Paris' face grew dark.  
"Yale is an excellent university."   
She snapped crossing her arms in front of her chest, while avoiding Tristin's gaze. Ouch, he had apparently touched a very tender spot…

An awkward silence threatened to close in, when suddenly the suit door in front of them was opened from the inside.  
A brunette girl stood in the doorframe, obviously surprised by Paris' company.  
"G'd mornin'." She murmured eying the blonde guy insistently from top to bottom. Although he seemed really underslept, he was still remarkably handsome. Especially his deep blue eyes shone out.  
Something on her mind told her, that she was supposed to know him, but no matter how hard she tried, she just couldn't recognize him.  
She opened her mouth to introduce herself, but shut it immediately when she saw the expression on Paris' face and decided, that she'd better set off to get another cup of this fantastic coffee from the Kiosk at the library instead.  
If she really already knew this guy, she'd surely remember sometime.

"Who was that?" Tristin questioned curiously while his eyes followed the petite girl down the hallway.  
"Rory Gilmore. She started Chilton shortly before you went away. We're roommates now." Paris answered matter- of-factly.  
"Rory Gilmore…" Tristin repeated thoughtfully.   
"How come I don't know her?" He asked both Paris and himself the same time, wondering why he couldn't remember her.  
Paris shrugged.  
"Perhaps because she's not one of you're typical girls, DuGrey."  
A smirk spread across Tristin's face.  
"Not one of my typical girls?"

"Yeah, you know, blonde either in- or outside, most of them both."  
"Ha Ha," Tristin said deadpanned. "Very funny Paris." Tristin frowned, leaning against the wall beside him. It seemed Paris' opinion of him was still low, but at the moment he didn't care.  
"So, what kind of girl is she then?"  
"She's smart, busy, ambitious, a bookworm, everyone likes her…"  
"An innocent Mary then?" Tristin interjected Paris, taken aback by the fact that she talked about someone so positively.  
Paris nodded.   
"You might say so…"   
She said watching Tristin's eyes drifting again in the direction Rory had left.  
"Forget it, Tristin." She warned.  
"What?"  
"You know what I mean."  
Tristin smirked.  
"Actually, I don't."  
"Oh come on, I saw it. The look on you're face. I haven't forgotten what it means. Don't even think about trying it. You won't succeed."  
"Try what?"  
"Ah-"Paris waved aside. "Just don't" She warned again before she disappeared in her suite.

Shortly after Rory had returned to her suite, there was a knock on her door. She answered it and two of the girls, who had joined the little party that Lorelai had organized for the girls to get to know each other the last night, were standing outside. "Hey, you're up?" The first one, Mallory asked.  
" Yes, I'm up."  
Rory smiled, delighted about their visit.  
" Aw, and you've already got coffee." The second one, Hannah, spoke a bit crestfallen, pointing onto the coffee mug Rory was holding in her hands.  
"That's a shame, cauz' we Lorelai'd a few places and found some good coffee."  
Rory raised an eyebrow.  
"Lorelai'd?"  
"Checked places out." Mallory explained.  
"Seemed like the appropriate word. We found decent muffins, too, but I bet there's better out there." Hannah shrugged.  
"You'll Lorelai 'em another time." Rory smiled. She was amused by the fact that her mother had been dedicated her own verb. She couldn't wait to tell her!

"I'm sure we will. Well, actually this coffee should be a thank you for last night."  
Mallory said raising another paper mug in the direction of Rory's.  
"Do you want it anyway?"  
What a question. Of course she wanted it. Rory quickly took the last sips of her own coffee and nodded.  
"It was a perfect first night at Yale. " Mallory commended as she handed Rory the new mug of hot liquid.  
"I thought so."  
"We're gonna go to the freshman assembly together. Do you wanna come?"  
Hannah proposed biting into a cinnamon muffin.  
Rory nodded.  
"Sure. I'll just ask Paris if she wants to come with us too - if you're OK with this… She's acting like something bit her this morning."   
Rory said and disappeared for a few seconds into her dorm.

"Hey, we thought we'd conveniently lose our student ID's and go take new pictures after the assembly."  
"Oh my God, I'm so with you on that one."  
Rory laughed approvingly after she came out of the dorm with Paris.  
"Cool." Hannah and Mallory said in union making all four girls laugh.  
When they were leaving the dorm, Rory sipped her coffee with pleasure..  
"Do you like it? Kiosk by the library."  
Hannah explained proudly, when she saw how much Rory loved her present.  
"I love it." Rory moaned.  
"I got my first two cups from there, too."  
"Oh, you found it first! " Hannah whined disappointedly.  
"Kind of…" Rory smiled thinking of the person who really discovered it- most likely by testing every single place selling coffee on the whole campus. Chuckling she took another sip. Mallory watched her astonished.  
"This is your third cup?"   
She asked surprised at Rory's calmness with so much caffeine in her system. Paris, however, simply shook her head.  
"You're so addicted, Gilmore."

Due to the fact that they just had to walk up College Street to reach the Woolsey Hall, where the freshmen assembly was taking place, the four girls arrived there before most of the other students.  
When they entered the huge building, they gasped astonished by the overwhelming sight.  
Although Rory had read a lot about the hall,- amongst other things, for example that it was built in 1901 and seated 2,700 students, she had never imagined it to be _this_ big inside!   
tThe big organ at the other end of the hall which had an enormous effect on the space, made the room marvellous. If she had had to guess its height, Rory would have said, it was at least ten times as tall as her!  
Deciding, that they'd probably have the best view from the free seats on the balcony the girls went upstairs. They sat down on the puce wood and watched the hall gradually filling.

At about ten o'clock the assembly was introduced by the organ playing Bach's 29th Cadana. Afterwards the addresses of the university's president and dean followed.  
Bored by the bulk of stirring words on the _alas, so_ stately occasion, Tristin DuGrey found himself staring at the back of the brunette girl two rows beneath his.  
Her smooth hair was tight up to a high ponytail, like it had been yet when he met her earlier this morning and it had a silky shine, which wandered slowly with the slight moves of her head.  
Although he could have gotten lost in studying the details, Tristin could neither help it, nor explain why, but his eyes consistently returned to her ear. It fascinated him somehow…

After the freshman assembly had ended, Rory went back down the balcony stairs. Right when she was about to take the last step, someone suddenly bumped into her.  
She tripped and nearly fell, but retrieved her balance just in time, when a hand caught her arm.

Rory turned around to see to whom it belonged to and found herself facing the same guy who had had been talking to Paris earlier.  
He let go of her arm and ran a hand through his hair, before sending Rory a charming smile.  
"Sorry. I didn't mean to bump into you…Are you okay?" He apologized.  
Rory nodded.  
"I'm alright, thanks."  
"Well, fine then."  
The blonde said going through his hair again and Rory knew at once, that his hair wasn't messy, because he was to lazy to comb it.  
He thoughtfully nipped his eyes together.  
"Don't we know each other?"  
"We met, when you were talking to Paris this morning…"  
"Yeah, yeah - uhm, no. I mean from former times…You went to Chilton, too, right?"  
Tristin cleverly used the facts Paris had delivered him. Rory nodded approvingly.  
"Absolutely. I'm-"she wanted to introduce herself, but Tristin cut her off.  
"No, let me guess…You're Mary!"  
Rory shook her head.  
"Close. It's Rory."  
"Rory?" Tristin asked doubtfully.  
Rory noticed that his eyes drifted away from her.  
"No." He spoke still staring over her head.  
"I think it was _Mary_." He smirked to her, and it seemed to Rory, someone else at the same time. She shook her head, but before she could protest, he left.  
"What the hell was this about?" Rory thought out loud.  
"That was about Tristin DuGrey doing exactly the opposite of what I advised him to."  
Paris grumbled appearing by Rory's side. She had watched the scene, which of course had started by_ pure chance_.  
"But I'm afraid I just willed him on."  
Rory gave her a questioning look.  
"Aha, I see." She muttered even more confused.

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That's it! The first chapter…  
Please take time to review, because I took so much time for researching for- and working on it.  
Plus: I really think it's worth it :lol:  
So- tell me what you think!  
(and if you have any better suggestions for the story title…)  
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	2. Act your age!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything but my own ideas!

**Special Thanks** to:**Fairy girl 07**, who did a great job as my beta for this chapter!

**AN:**Tristin might seem grown up a bit, but just wait until he begins to really like Rory!  
So, have fun with the next chapter - and don't forget to tell me if and how you liked it!

**  
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**Chapter 2- Act your age!**  
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When Tristin woke up after a long nap, he felt passably recuperated from last night's party.

He threw a simple white shirt on and slipped into a pair of comfortable jeans.

Rubbing the remaining sleep out of his eyes, he left his bedroom.

He had hardly entered the common room, when his bare feet tapped into a gooey liquid.

With a disgusted groan, Tristin removed his hand from his eyes and looked around the room.

God, had it really been that messed up?

It looked like someone had thrown a bomb into it: empty bottles everywhere, dumped glasses and cans, as well as rubbish cover the ground.

Seemingly, his roommates had neither been in the mood to clean up yet,

Most recently, they we're still sleeping, as he should be, too, Tristin decided, as he looked at the chaos and frustratingly ran a hand through his already tousled hair.

Grudgingly he cleaned his feet and began to clean up, but after a bag of collected cans and a couple of mopped up slops he got bored and decided to leave the rest of the mess over for his roommates.

Therefore, he took a coke out of their mini fridge and left the dormitory to walk around New Haven a bit.

He emptied the can fast. Passing the next trashcan, he threw it away.

He may have looked hardly a second into the trashcan, but when he did so, he casually caught a glimpse of a student ID, which was lying between the rubbish.

He stopped. Who'd throw their ID away?

Curiously, he shifted the trash aside, picked it up and contemplated it. Looking at picture and name, Tristin chuckled amused- now he knew why.

There was a knock on Rory's suite door. She opened and when she saw Tristin standing in front of it, giving her a charming smile, she couldn't help but smile back. "Hey,"

Tristin's smile turned into a smirk. "Hey Mary."

Rory's smile disappeared at once. "It's _Rory,"_ she said more annoyed, than she had intended to. She didn't know why, but the way he called her Mary released or activated something in her. "What do you want? Paris isn't there." She said shortly.

"Actually I wanted to you." Tristin answered matter-of-factly. Rory gave him a questioning look.

"And why is that?"

"Because I have a question: Is it always the case, that people don't know your proper name?"

Rory shook her head. "No, just you don't," she retorted and Tristin smirked.

"Oh, I do know your name, Mary. But apparently Yale doesn't", he said before making a short pause to give Rory the opportunity to think. Then he went on with an amused grin. "I think you lost something, Ro_n_y." Tristin said raising the wrong printed student ID, he had found in the trashcan. After showing it to Rory, he turned it around to survey it over again. "Nice picture", he said restraining laughter. "You look like you got at least two of your wisdom teeth out."

Rory grimaced, but when Tristin leaned in to hand her the ID card and added, "And although the picture's bad, you're beautiful otherwise."

She blushed embarrassed. "Thanks." She murmured barely audible, her blue eyes locked for a second with Tristin's.

As she noticed, Rory immediately gathered herself and looked away, hoping not to blush even more. However, she must have done so, because when she looked back at Tristin, he had such a cocky, fulsome self-confident smirk plastered on his face, she could have slapped him for.

Instead, she narrowed her eyes at him and taunted, if it was normal for him to go through trashcans, knowing exactly where he had found her student ID.

Tristin shrugged.

"It's at least as normal for me, as throwing away a student ID is for you, Mary", he smirked at first pointing a finger on himself, then at her.

Rory scoffed.

She wanted to say something back, but breathed a. millisecond too long because another smirk appeared on Tristin's face. "There you are, Mary," he teased her amused.  
Just then he saw from the corner of his eye, that one of his roommates was going up the stairs to the boy's floor and because Tristin knew, that he'd have to follow him to their suite to guarantee, that there'd be order anytime near in the future, he decided to lead the conversation in direction of its end.

"So…I guess I'll see you tonight, Mary." He said more as stating fact, than asking a question. Ready to turn around and leave, Tristin noticed that Rory obviously couldn't follow him and held on.

"Tonight?" She asked puzzled, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Yeah, _tonight_." He said leaning a bit forward, mouthing the last word clearly and stressing it as a hint. Nevertheless, he could read from her face, that she still didn't know what he was talking about. Tristin ran a hand through his hair. "The first party of the year? Don't you tell me you didn't know about it yet…?" He said wondering, if she really could have missed that news.

Suddenly it clicked in Rory's head. "Hum, of course I did, but I don't think we'll see each other there. I wasn't planning to take part."

"You weren't _planning to take part_?" Tristin frowned. "But you do know, that it'll take place on your floor?"

Rory crossed her arms in front of her chest. "I'm not living behind the moon. I know that it takes place on my floor, but I also know that if I take part, I'll have to open my door for all the people who want to come in and I don't think, that this I a good Idea. Because I have the misgiving that _someone_ might annoy me the whole evening", she said annoyed by Tristin acting as if she was a complete buffoon. He, however, just used her allusion on him to answer.  
"Well, Mary, I think you should try it. I'm sure you'll discover, that these people aren't so bad…," he said sending her a charming smile, which, however, hadn't its planned effect on Rory, who was still wondering, if he'd ever learn her name.

"That's your opinion", she said unbelievingly.

Tristin nodded. "That it is. Let's see if yours won't change, Mary, "he said cockily and winked at her, before he finally left." I don't think so." Rory muttered watching him as he sauntered away.  
"And it's Rory." She added crabbily, before she turned around and closed her suite door behind her.

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Lost in the lines of Ernest Hemingway, Rory had settled back on the sofa in the common room of her suite, as a hysterical Paris walked in and went straight over to her.

"Did you hear?" She asked excitedly as she stood in front of Rory.

"Hear what?" Rory questioned back, looking up from her book, as she heard the excitement in Paris' voice.

"The first party of the year, you know, the one which was originally planned to celebrate the first week of classes, was brought forward aaaand, it's going to be on our floor. Everyone who wants to take part will just leave their door open, so people can just wander in and out." Paris explained, while gesturing wildly with her hands, but she had to watch the curiosity fading from Rory's face, as she turned back to her book.

"Oh, that. Yeah, I already know." Rory murmured uninterestedly and continued her lecture.

"And?" Paris digged deeper.

"And what?"

"What are we going to do?"

Rory sighed, trying not to lose her line. "Since when are you for the themes quickly degenerating to 'Hey, walking works- let's drink.'"

Paris took a deep breath. "Look Rory, the important thing is, that this party, the first party is going to be on our floor. Our floor."

"Yes, our floor." Rory repeated dryly, trying hard not to lose her line.

"So?"

"So, what?" _Just concentrate, Rory…._

"So, what are we going to do?"

_Trying to ignore the annoying roommate further on. _"Nothing."

"What do you mean by nothing?"

_Argh! Great! Now she was out! Paris had succeeded. _Irascibly Rory closed her book and looked up. "Nothing, nothing. I don't want to open my door open to _everyone_. "

"So we're not going to be apart of the _first_ party on _our_ floor?"

_She really knows how to drive you nuts! _"Nope, But look, you can still go." _Stay diplomatic.  
_  
"Going isn't the same."

_But enough! _"But it is something."

"So, no is your last word?"

_Wasn't it oblivious? _"Yep."

"Then, what are you going to do tonight?"

"Actually I was planning to read a book and go to bed early."

"Aha." Paris said in a voice full of anger. "I was expecting something like this."

"Fine, then you were prepared." Rory retorted shaking her head, as she reopened.

However, when Paris stood up without another word and left in direction of her room, Rory became sceptical. _That's all?_ Her inner voice told her repeatedly. That had been excessively easy! After all, she had refused to Paris- Paris Geller. In addition, it seemed impossible to Rory that Paris Geller had just given up. Paris Geller would never, never ever give up that fast!

Overwhelmed by a sudden misgiving, Rory quickly put her book aside, jumped off the couch and followed Paris, who had just picked up the phone and dialled a number.  
When she heard Rory coming up behind her, she told her, that she was sorry, but apparently had no other choice. That of course, made Rory begin to panic.

"No choice to do what?" She asked stepping closer, trying to catch a glimpse of the phone display. Nevertheless, Paris kept her at bay. "Paris, what are you talking about? Who are you calling?"

"Your Mom." Paris said and pressed the green button.

Rory's eyes flashed open. "My Mom?"

"Yes, your Mom, Rory. Maybe she'll be able to show you, how important this first Party is. Ah, hello Lorelai. Paris here, I thought you should know that Rory is going to miss the perfect opportunity to solidify our social standing at Yale. She is refusing to open our door tonight, which is necessary to be a part of the first party of the year, which in turn will virtually guarantee invitations to every other party thrown this year, and which will get our faces in people's heads. I thought you could bring her to senses. You wanna talk to her? Okay, bye Lorelai, Thank you."

With that, Paris turned to Rory and pressed the phone into her roommate's hand. "It's for you."

"Oh yeah? I wouldn't have guessed." Rory muttered sarcastically, before she brought the phone to her ear. "Hey Mom."

"Hey Sweetheart." Lorelai greeted from the other end of the line.

"How are you?"

"More adventuresome than you. Why don't you want to take part at that party tonight?"

"Wow, straight ahead, huh?"

"I'm under time pressure…Luke is coming over in an hour."

"An hour?"

"We're going out and my red bra with frills is missing."

Rory chuckled, as well aware of her mother's disorder, as of her taking her saying _'if underwear, then matching one'_ very serious.

"Oh, OK then." She said completely understanding.

"Yup. So, sweetie, what's wrong?"

"What's wrong? Huh? Ask Paris! She's totally of freakin' out. She's thinking she will miss the perfect chance to start over new just because I prefer reading a book instead of having a bunch of strangers wandering through my room…I'm sorry she bothered you."

For a second the line lay in silence, then Lorelai said something, she knew ahead, her daughter would not want to hear. "Maybe she's right."

"Mom!"

"No, listen Rory. It is the first party of the year and you want to read a book instead of going? God, you can read whenever you want, but the _first_ party-"

"….Is taking place only once," Rory finished sighing and Lorelai nodded into the phone.

"You got it. I knew you where a smart kid. Come on, Rory. This is not only about making friends, you're making friends anyway- everybody likes you. It just belongs to college- like football games, parties, protests, barn burnings…."

"Barn burnings?" Rory laughed.

"Those are all experiences. Maybe dumb ones, but they are. "Lorelai defended her example, before she went on. "Come on, you'll have fun. Maybe it isn't such a bad idea to get to know the people in your building, see who's gonna be the ones to have the emergency Pop Tarts on hand…Who knows, you might even stumble across someone, who is…._someone_. "

Lorelai said clearly alluding on the fact, that since her first boyfriend, Dean, Rory had neither been together with someone, nor had been on a date.

Well, in fact, she had been on one date: A date with Jess.  
But it took them less than an hour to figure out, that they were not dating material for each other.

Much to Lorelai's relief, who couldn't stand Jess at first. Nevertheless, by and by she began to like him (not only because she really enjoyed his pranks) and she had to admit, that he and Rory were great friendship material. Her daughter had found a big brother in him and since Lorelai got together with Luke, he slowly became like a son for her.

Well, as much as she appreciated Rory being a good, innocent girl, she was an 18-year-old young woman now and if Lorelai wanted to be grandma anytime before she landed in a nursing home, her daughter finally had to get over the thing with Dean.

As projected, Rory took Lorelai's hint at her nonexistent love life, but without much enthusiasm.

"Great. I already stumbled across someone who's weird, annoying, incredible cocky and a jerk." She said, thinking of her encounter with Tristin.

Lorelai chuckled. "4 words are a lot to describe someone you only stumbled across…is he hot?"

"Either he has memory problems or a speech impediment. He can't say Rory, although I told him often enough. Definitely he keeps calling me Mary.

Suddenly Rory heard he Mom laughing at the other end of the line.  
"Mary? A Bible Boy, huh? I can't believe they still say that. But it fits somehow."

"What?"

"Mary. like Virgin Mary. It means he thinks you look like a goody goody."

"You're kidding."

"No."

"Just great, and how do I get him to stop?"

"Well, you don't need to change into a Magdalene, but doing more things I'd do may help."

"Like?"

"Like opening the door to the world."

Rory sighed. "I will."

"Fine, I've to hang up. We talked way too long and I've still not idea where my bra is."

"Look in the oven."

"I will. Bye honey, I love you."

"Love you, too, Mom."

Lorelai pressed the button and the signal tooted.

Rory put the phone aside and smiled at their conversation. Then she turned around to face Paris, who stood next to her, her eyes wide open in waiting.

Rory sighed.

"No themes."

"But-"

"No."

"One candle?"

"At the most."


End file.
